Scottish Parliament

Written Answers

Wednesday 11 August 1999

Scottish Executive

Enterprise

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the full reviews undertaken by Scottish Enterprise on the performance and impact of "Technology Ventures" during the last 12 months.

Henry McLeish: I have asked the Chairman of Scottish Enterprise to write to Alex Neil MSP on this matter and I understand that he has already done so.

Environment

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to seek information from Her Majesty’s Government about any correspondence between Her Majesty’s Government and the Chairman of the North of Scotland Water Authority regarding the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) and, if so, whether it will make details of this correspondence available.

Sarah Boyack: We have no plans to seek information about such correspondence.

Environment

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make available copies of any correspondence it has had with the Chairman of the North of Scotland Water Authority regarding the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC).

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive has not had any correspondence with the Chairman of the North of Scotland Water Authority regarding the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive.

Environment

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make available copies of all correspondence it has had with the North of Scotland Water Authority regarding the implementation of the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive (91/271/EEC) and whether it will seek and make available details of any correspondence which Her Majesty’s Government has had with the North of Scotland Water Authority on the same topic.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive has not had any correspondence with the Chairman of the North of Scotland Water Authority regarding the Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive. We have no plans to seek details of correspondence on this topic which Her Majesty’s Government has had with the water authority.

Environment

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will increase the resources available to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency for testing the water quality of Scotland’s beaches.

Sarah Boyack: Government has identified 60 bathing waters in Scotland. These identifications under EC Directive 76/160/EEC (The Bathing Water Directive) provide protection for both the environment and public health and require the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to carry out sampling in accordance with the Bathing Waters (Classification) (Scotland) Regulations 1991. I am satisfied that it has sufficient resources to allow it to perform this statutory function. SEPA also has a general duty under section 34 of the Environment Act 1995 to promote the cleanliness of the tidal waters of Scotland.

Equal Opportunities

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what actions it intends to take to end discrimination against single people in respect of the services delivered within its own areas of responsibility.

Jackie Baillie: We are committed to mainstreaming of equality into all aspects of Scottish Executive policy and service delivery. This means that all policies will be examined for any differential impact on different groups within society. This could include people of different marital status. Where there is an unjustifiable differential impact, action will be taken.

Food

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in relation to the labelling of meat products, it will take steps to ensure that the phrase "Produced in Scotland" means born and raised in Scotland.

Ross Finnie: Meat products are defined in EC law and the labelling requirements are largely harmonised at EC level. These requirements are implemented in Scotland by the Food Labelling Regulations 1996. They require that the particulars of country of origin or provenance be provided on a label if failure to give such particulars might mislead the purchaser to a material degree as to the true origin or provenance of the food. Meat products can contain a variety of ingredients, many of which will not derive from Scotland (for example herbs and spices). It is not therefore appropriate to label meat products in the way suggested.

Health

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans the Minister for Health and Community Care has to meet representatives from the British Dental Association (Scotland) to discuss dental decay in children under the age of 14.

Susan Deacon: I have written to the British Dental Association inviting them to a meeting to discuss oral health issues.

Health

Bruce Crawford (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider ensuring that an ambulance service is based in Kinross on a twenty-four hour cover basis.

Susan Deacon: It is for the Scottish Ambulance Service and Tayside Health Board to determine the level and configuration of emergency ambulance service provision across the Tayside Health Board area. This is being looked at as part of a wider review of Acute Services that is being carried out by the Health Board in consultation with the Scottish Ambulance Service, local hospitals, general practitioners, the health council and service users.

  The Scottish Executive expects Health Boards to apply the principles of the national Acute Services Review report when planning services for people in rural areas by balancing local access with the provision and maintenance of viable services of appropriate quality.

Justice

Michael Matheson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will improve interpreting services for ethnic minorities in the criminal justice system.

Lord Hardie: I refer the member to page 11 of "An Action Plan for Scotland", the Scottish Executive’s response to The Stephen Lawrence Inquiry which was launched on Tuesday 20 July, copies of which are available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre. In the report we have acknowledged that the current provision of interpretation services to victims of crime and their families is not consistent in its delivery. As a consequence, the Scottish Executive, in consultation with ACPOS, COSLA and other interested parties, will be examining the provision and standard of interpretation and translating services across the criminal justice system.

Justice

Tricia Marwick (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the Minister for Justice will meet Mrs Molly Godley, whose son Ian was killed in February 1998 in an alleged arson attack, to discuss with her the progress of the case.

Lord Hardie: No. I am responsible for criminal prosecutions and the investigation of deaths in Scotland. I am sorry, but there is nothing I can add to the information which has already been provided to Mrs Godley and her representatives about the tragic death of her son.

Police

Donald Gorrie (Central Scotland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive to specify the Scottish police forces which use the "trawling" procedure of inviting former residents in care homes to put forward complaints of child abuse against former care staff, and approximately how many hours of police time have been taken up in these "trawls" in the last period for which figures are available, and the previous three years.

Mr Jim Wallace: Police forces do not elicit or canvass complaints against individuals or organisations who are not already subject to investigation. Any additional allegations against named individuals which arise during the course of the   investigation of a complaint will be followed up by the police as part of that investigation.

Rural Affairs

Alasdair Morgan (Galloway and Upper Nithsdale) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it has taken to ensure that imported pork, bacon and ham supplied to its own and local authority catering services complies to the same standards as that with which pig producers in Scotland are obliged to comply.

Ross Finnie: Neither the Treaty of Rome nor the rules of the World Trade Organisation allow Scotland to ban the import of meat products that have not been produced to the same husbandry standards as required here.

  However, a new EC Directive, agreed in June 1998 and which must be implemented by the end of this year, will encourage a more level playing field by requiring minimum standards on welfare, inspection, feeding etc for all farmed animals.

  That same Directive also recognises the importance of widening consensus on animals welfare, requiring the European Commission to produce a report comparing EU welfare conditions with those of third country suppliers.

Tourism

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide an estimate of the financial contribution the West Highland Way makes to the Scottish economy each year and the cost of necessary repairs to it.

Sarah Boyack: The West Highland Way is estimated to generate some £3.5m per annum for the local economy and support some 168 jobs. The managing authorities of the Way agreed in 1998 a 3 year improvement package to carry out necessary repairs totalling some £527,554.

Transport

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive under the terms of the European Directive on road bridges (96/53), what is the number of bridges still to be assessed, still to be upgraded and currently restricted below 40 tonnes, and what its proposals and timescale are to implement the directive.

Sarah Boyack: At present there are no weight restrictions on bridges which are the responsibility of the Scottish Executive. The assessment of 4 structures has still to be completed. Out of a total of 1024 bridges in the trunk road assessment programme, 94 did not pass the initial assessment. It is expected that many of these will pass when reassessed using more sophisticated techniques. Replacement or strengthening of the remainder will be programmed over a number of years on a prioritised basis in line with available funding. In the interim it is unlikely that any of these bridges will need to be weight restricted.

  Information about bridges on the local road network is not held centrally since responsibility for their maintenance rests with individual Councils as local roads authorities.

Transport

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to provide a route by route analysis of each ferry route under the operation of Caledonian MacBrayne.

Sarah Boyack: The Annual Report and Accounts of Caledonian MacBrayne Ltd provide results analysed by area of operation. There are no plans to provide this information on a route by route basis.